Scarlet Stains
by Gingerme
Summary: A sequel to The Child of Loki: Two years after leaving SHIELD Natasha, Loki, and Scarlet have realized how difficult it is for three people who've never had a family to live as one. Scarlet has lost control and run away. But what will happen when she hits rock bottom. When difficult decisions must be made will her parents be able to support her? OC trained by Daisy
1. Prologue

**Hi everyone, this story is a sequel to my first story "The Child of Loki" it can be found here (** s/11088686/1/The-Child-of-Loki) **That story was strictly Avengers, but this one will be a cross over between Avengers and Agents of SHIELD. I will be explaining a lot of the AOS stuff because the OC is just meeting them, so you probably don't have to be an avid watcher to enjoy. It follows the Avengers to the end of the first movie and AOS to the end of the second season with the exception of a certain character (Andrew) still being a part of the show. This is an AU where SHIELD never collapsed.**

 **This story follows the OC from my first story, Scarlet. It is not the happy fluffy story a lot of my readers asked for, but what can I say, I prefer dark/sad stories. It will mainly focus on Scarlet and her relationships with the AOS cast. But there will be chapters with eth avengers, and especially Nat and Loki as well.**

 **Since this is going to be dark/sad I want to give people fair warnings. For the whole story there will be trigger warnings for suicide, self-harm, alcohol use, and lots of angsty emotions. More specific warnings before each chapter. The trigger warning for suicide is pretty serious for this chapter, you can skip it and you wouldn't miss too much.**

 **Everything but the OCs and the plot belong to marvel.**

Scarlet stood in the center of the street, staring wildly around. No one moved, they scarcely dared to breathe while she watched them. A car was zooming down the street ahead of her, she could see the jet black convertible speeding down what should have been a crowded street and swerving to a stop less than 100 feet from her. Her heart sank into her stomach. Things were unraveling fast, and if she couldn't get them back it would only get worse.

"Please Scarlet" A trembling officer was calling to her. Officer Davis, she knew him of course. In such a small town you could know everyone, but with as much contact as she had had with the police department, she knew Officer Davis quite well. And he liked to think he knew her. But he didn't. "We can talk this out, it doesn't have to end this way. Just put the gun down."

Her mother and father practically leapt out of the car the moment it had pulled to a stop. Natasha froze when she saw Scarlet, taking in the scene. It must have looked bad, Scarlet thought. Here she was, standing in the middle of the street at two o'clock in the afternoon holding a gun to her head. She hadn't meant for this to happen here… She had been alone, then without warning she had been teleported to the street.

So there she stood, in the middle of the street. Gun to her temple. Blood dripped down her arms, she couldn't even remember how she had cut herself. She couldn't feel it. It didn't matter anyway, she was invincible.

Natasha stared at her wild eyed daughter with fear in her eyes, but it was not she who spoke, it was her husband.

"Scarlet," he said in a shockingly soft voice. Loki had changed a lot since they had moved to the small town. He went by Luke now, and he and Natasha ran a bar together. He was a wonderful father, and right now she could see the fear and concern in his eyes. "Scarlet I know you are scared… this didn't go the way you wanted it to. Now you feel like you can't back down, like there is no way out. But you're wrong kid. Just put the gun down."

"Shut up!" Scarlet snapped "Don't pretend you know what is happening, what I am thinking. I'm not you!" she spat.

Natasha glanced at Loki worriedly, thinking that her daughter was resembling her husband more now than she ever had before. "SHIELD will be here soon, if we can't get her to calm down…" she whispered over the hood of their car. "Scarlet, please… we just want to help you." She said as calmly as she could. As she said it the sleek black cars appeared in the distance, and snipers appeared on the roof behind Scarlet. A short man in a black suit walked up next to her and muttered under his breath "Don't worry, they are icers".

She glanced at him in surprise and muttered a shocked "Coulson" but she didn't have time for anything else. Scarlet was not taking the arrival of SHIELD very well.

"Get back!" She screamed "get back or I swear I'll do it!"

Natasha shook her head "Just ice her before she hurts someone. She won't listen to reason."

She turned back to look sadly at her daughter but found that she was gone. Her only relief was that the gun had been left behind.

"We need to find her"


	2. Chapter 1

**Trigger warnings for suicide, self-harm, alcohol use, and lots of angsty emotions. More specific warnings before each chapter. The trigger warning for self-harm is specific to this chapter.**

 **Everything but the OCs and the plot belong to marvel.**

When Steve walked into his small house on the SHIELD base he immediately knew that he was not alone. Reaching for his gun he crept forward silently. Someone was in his kitchen and they had the light on. He paused for a moment before throwing the door open primed to attack.

Scarlet screamed and teleported away suddenly at Steve's sudden entrance. Almost as quickly as she had left she went back hands up in surrender. "It's just me Steve, I'm sorry I shouldn't have broken in but it was cold!"

Steve stared at her for a second before lowering his gun. He had a confused look on his face, and she didn't blame him. Steve hadn't seen Scarlet in over a year, none of the Avengers had seen her in almost two months, not even her parents. They were frantic. "Scarlet, what the hell?" he finally blurted out.

She waved her hands helplessly. "I didn't know where to go… I'm sorry I know I've no right to be here, to ask for your help but I had to go somewhere."

He sighed and gestured to a stool at the counter while he filled the kettle and turned on his stove. "Why didn't you go home?" he asked as she sat down.

Scarlet bit her lip "I couldn't" was all she said.

Steve gave her a long, conflicted look. He stayed silent as he made the tea. Finally he pulled out his phone and ordered a pizza, then he sat down next to his friend's daughter. "You want to tell me what happened?" he asked quietly.

Scarlet shook her head miserably. She didn't want to talk at all, she knew she would have to sooner or later, that Steve would probably even make her call her parents, but she was going to put it off as long as possible.

Steve waited quietly, looking her over as subtly as he could. She looked okay over all. She was thinner than the last time he had seen her, and it looked as though she hadn't showered or slept in a while, but she didn't appear hurt. Eventually the pizza arrived and he watched her eat hungrily, wondering when her last meal had been. After she had eaten her fill she thanked him quietly, then asked the question that had been burning in her mind. "Steve… can I stay here tonight? I won't cause any trouble… just one night…"

Steve smiled and pulled her into a hug "You can stay here as long as you like Scarlet" he said with tears in his eyes. Then more firmly "But you must call your parents."

She pulled away and bit her lip "Now?" she asked worriedly.

He nodded and handed her the phone.

Scarlet wanted to ask him to do it, she wanted to cry and tell him she couldn't, but she knew he was right. This was all her fault, and she should be the one to call. She sat down and started to dial, praying that her father would be the one to pick up the phone. Her hands were shaking, and she could feel herself teleporting rapidly from spot to spot in front of Steve. The mug she had been drinking out of shattered. She bit down on her lip hard, and when she tasted blood she felt herself calming down.

"Hello"

It was her mother's voice, crap. "Hi… mom…."

There was a sharp gasp at the other end, then she heard her father's voice in the distance. "Scarlet?"

"Yeah…" she said awkwardly "It's me."

"Where are you?" she sounded desperate, like she was worried that her daughter might hang up any moment.

Scarlet had to laugh for a moment, her mother never bothered to look at the caller ID… for a spy, she was awfully lazy when it came to technology. "Um… I'm with Steve."

"Rogers?" she sounded surprised. Now Scarlet could clearly hear her father asking questions rapidly.

"Uh, yeah…"

Now that her mom knew she was somewhere safe the worry of her daughter hanging up and disappearing dissipated. "Where the hell have you been? How could you just leave like that? DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW WORRIED WE HAVE BEEN!"

Scarlet choked back tears, she wouldn't cry on the phone. "I'm sorry mom… I know I screwed up." She glanced up at Steve, wondering if she had fulfilled her duty in calling. "Mom, I've got to go… I'll call you later okay?" Before Steve stopped her or her mom could respond she hung up the phone and chucked it on the table. Almost immediately it started ringing.

Steve sighed "That was rude." he said in a resigned voice. "Look, why don't you go get a shower, I'll talk to her."

Scarlet smiled gratefully and grabbing her cane she limped off to the bathroom at the end of the hall. Steve only had lame manly shampoo, but she didn't care, she was just happy to have hot water and soap.

Steve watched her hobble down the hall, then reached for the angrily ringing phone. "Nat, it's me."

"Put her back on!" Natasha practically screamed.

Steve sighed "I sent her to get a shower, she wouldn't talk to you right now anyway… You two are too much alike."

There was silence on the other end for a while. Finally he heard Natasha sigh and say "Is she okay?"

He smiled and sat down at his now empty kitchen table. "Yes. She looked pretty roughed up, and I think she's lost some weight, but she's alive…"

"Why did she come there?"

He had been wondering the same thing. "I have no idea. She was here when I got home. I thought she was an intruder and nearly shot her."

"Well Loki and I can be there tomorrow to pick her up."

Steve bit his lip "I'm not sure that's a good idea Nat. With her powers you can't exactly just drag her home. She would just run away again. I'll keep a close eye on her, but I think you need to let her come home on her own."

Natasha did not like that idea, she hadn't seen her daughter in 2 months and she wasn't about to leave her be. But she also knew that Steve was right, and she would do anything to keep from losing her daughter again. They talked for a little longer, agreeing that Steve would have Scarlet call her mother again the next day. Then Steve hung up and went to make up the guest bedroom.

When Scarlet finally drug herself out of the shower she found that Steve had left a pair of old sweat pants and a SHIELD Tee shirt out for her. They were both huge on her but she was too tired to care. She followed him into his guest room and collapsed on the soft bed.

She didn't wake up for almost ten hours, and when she did it was to the smell of pancakes. For a moment she thought she was back home.

Steve had made a beautiful breakfast, but it came at a cost. As she sat down to take her first bite he sat down across from her and folded his arms "Alright kid, I think it's time we talked."

She put the fork down and sighed, this was going to come eventually. "Fine… what do you want to know?"

"Well, for starters, where have you been for two months?"

He wasn't speaking harshly, but Scarlet felt shame creep into the pit of her stomach. "All over the place… for a while I was sneaking into hotels and sleeping in unused rooms. But then I got caught. After that I slept in the woods, or maybe a house if I could find an empty one. I stole food from convenience stores and teleported from town to town to keep from getting caught."

"Why did you run away?" he asked softly.

She bit her lip, the tension was building up and she could feel herself starting to lose control. She looked down at the fork in her hand and dug it into her palm, praying that Steve wouldn't notice. It did the trick, and if the older man had noticed he hadn't said anything. She shrugged "I just couldn't be there anymore. I couldn't stand the fighting."

Steve sighed, choosing not to bring up the incident that had led to her disappearance. "Natasha and Loki fight that much?" he asked sympathetically.

She bit her lip "Not exactly…. They fight with me…"

Now Steve looked confused, but he stayed silent, patiently waiting for her to continue.

"Everyone was worried about them getting along but they were fine. It wasn't until we were finally safe and settled into a house in town that they realized that neither of them knows anything about parenting."

Steve didn't really know what to say to this. Of course it had occurred to him that neither of them had every spoken to a teenager let alone raise one, but he had sort of assumed that it would come naturally once they were there.

Scarlet continued "I'm not the easiest kid to raise anyway. I don't think they really thought about it when they decided to run away with me."

Now Steve's confusion got the better of him "What do you mean?"

Scarlet shrugged "I'm trouble… have been all my life." When Steve still looked like he didn't believe she had ever caused real trouble in her whole life she realized she was going to have to give him more details. "It all started when I got in a fight at school." She almost laughed at the look on his face. "Hey," she said defensively "This crutch can land some serious blows." That got a chuckle out of him. "Anyway, that got the attention of this group of kids at school, and they started being friendly with me. I've never had many friends so I wanted to fit in… I did some things I'm not proud of… and things got out of hand." She bit her lip and stared at the ground. "I started drinking again, and then some drugs… and more fighting. After a while we were fighting every night. But it isn't like there was much they could do. If the grounded me I could just sneak out. It's not like they could keep me there. Finally one night they threatened to call SHIELD, I panicked and left. They hadn't seen me in two weeks when they found me in the street… I never meant to be there… but I've never been able to control my powers when I'm emotional… when I get really bad I teleport places…" She took a deep breath. "I know I screwed up, but I don't regret leaving. They would be happier without me, I was making them miserable."

Steve didn't speak for a long time, Scarlet even wondered briefly if he had fallen asleep. Finally stood and hugged her "They are not happier without you Scarlet. I know things haven't been easy but they love you, they just want to help you. I know it's hard but you need to go home."

Scarlet shook her head, but it wasn't in panic like it had been last night. "I'm not going home Steve. That won't solve anything. I know they love me, but it isn't enough. They don't have the resources to control me. I'm going back to SHIELD. I wasn't sure until last night, but while I was talking to my mom on the phone I realized that nothing had changed. If I go back I will fall right back into what I was doing and they can't do anything to stop me. I am too much like my father, I don't do well with power. I need boundaries."

Steve looked stunned "Are you sure?"

She nodded "I heard that SHIELD has a new program for training inhumans… I'm hoping they will accept me. Then maybe I can do some good in the world, and if I get out of hand I know they will do what it takes to stop me."

Steve looked at her and realized that her mind was made up, and that no matter how much Loki and Natasha would hate it, she was right. "Your mom is going to kill me." he muttered quietly.

She smiled "Yeah, I know."

"Will you see them before you go?"

She shook her head, "No… I can't risk changing my mind. But they can come see me… I think."

He smiled, he didn't say anything but all he could think was how brave she was being. She was making the call that neither of her parent's had been able to make when they were in over their head. He told her to finish her breakfast, then they drove to the main SHIELD compound.


	3. Chapter 2

**Trigger warnings for suicide, self-harm, alcohol use, and lots of angsty emotions. More specific warnings before each chapter.**

 **Everything but the OCs and the plot belong to marvel.**

She told the woman at the front desk who she was and in an instant the place was a frenzy of panic. Steve tried his best to stay with her, but she was whisked away by eight armed guards. Eventually he found her in the hospital wing in a special sealed room. They wouldn't let him in but he stood at the window and waved.

As he stood there a young woman wearing all black came and stood next to him. Keeping her eyes on Scarlet the woman said "You're the man who brought her in?"

"Yes mam."

She glanced at him briefly "I know you're not her father… so who are you?"

He smiled and stretched out his hand "Steve Rogers mam."

He almost laughed when her jaw dropped. It was a little mean but he so rarely met someone who didn't recognize him. "Oh my gosh… you're Captain America! You're like… a super hero!" she continued with a flurry of questions about him and the rest of the Avengers.

Eventually Coulson walked up and laughed "Daisy calm down!" he said as he reached out to shake Steve's hand. "You're a super hero too!"

Daisy blushed and stretched out her own hand "Daisy Johnson, the Quake. I'm the head of SHIELD's inhuman training program."

"Nice to meet you miss Johnson" Steve said warmly. "Do you think you're going to be able to help Scarlet?"

Daisy turned back to the window. "I hope so," she said in a softer voice. "All the other people who've entered the training program were strictly speaking what we call 'Inhumans' People with Cree blood in them that have been exposed to a stimulant which gives them their powers. Scarlet is different, she is literally half alien. But I will see what I can do for her."

Steve smiled appreciatively

Coulson pulled him away from the window a bit. "Would you mind tell us why you brought her here Steve?"

Steve took a deep breath, just now realizing that SHIELD hadn't heard from Natasha or Scarlet in over three years now. "Of course, well… As I'm sure SHIELD guessed, Natasha and Loki took Scarlet and went into hiding. They were hoping to get settled and live out their lives normally."

Coulson's eyes nearly popped out of his head "Natasha and LOKI?"

Steve laughed "Yeah I know, but after his father took Loki's powers from him the dude became bearable. I've actually kind of grown to like him. I think finding out he had a daughter changed him. Anyway, as far as I knew things were going well. I mean, I'm sure it was a hard adjustment for everyone, but they seemed happy. All of the Avengers knew where they were but we couldn't visit often because we were scared SHIELD might catch on. Two months ago Natasha called me and told me that Scarlet had run away. She just disappeared. I guess you guys probably knew about that… SHEILD sent a team to take her down but she disappeared before they could take her down. We all looked for her, but with her powers she can teleport almost twenty miles at a time so she's hard to track. None of us had heard from her until last night when I found her in my kitchen."

"And you brought her here instead of taking her home?" Daisy asked.

Steve shook his head "She asked me too. I guess things at home hadn't been as good as we thought. She was out of control… stealing, and drinking, and Natasha and Loki couldn't really stop her. They couldn't keep her from teleporting so they had no way of controlling her. I think she only came to me because she was hungry and cold, but this morning she asked me to bring her here. She said she knew she couldn't keep going without consequences, but she also knew that if she went back home things wouldn't change. Her parents can't help her. I really hope you guys can."

Daisy nodded and looked into the window while Coulson asked a few more logistical questions, finally asking if Scarlet's parents knew she was here. "She called them last night, but they don't know she came to SHIELD. She was worried they would try to stop her so she asked me to wait a bit before calling them.

Coulson shook his head "I don't envy you that conversation." He said quietly. "Daisy will help her Steve…" the older man said as he watched the young woman walk away from them."She's a great kid… and Scarlet's story hits close to home for her. If anyone can help, she can."

Scarlet sat in the small hospital room alone for what seemed like hours. There was a mirror along one wall that she could tell was really a one way window. She tried to amuse herself with guessing who was behind it, but eventually she gave up. She was wearing a hospital gown and had an IV sticking out of one arm. The room was specially sealed to keep her from using her powers to escape, and on top of that they had put her wrists in restraints.

Finally her door opened and young man came in, he wore dorky glasses and his hair was a bit messy. "Hello Scarlet" he said extending his hand, then awkwardly pulling it back when he saw her restraints. "My name is Fitz, I'm a scientist with SHIELD… I just came in to take some blood. We want to analyze your DNA to see if there is anything we can learn from it."

She glared at him, he seemed nice enough and she liked his British accent, but she didn't like the idea of being studied. "Do I have any choice?" she asked nervously.

He cocked his head to one side "Of course. We wouldn't do anything without your permission. But I just want to compare your blood to some of the other inhumans we've encountered. Because you get your powers from Asgardian heritage instead of Cree we are hopeful that comparing your DNA with the others will help us to identify which changes lead to powers and which lead to ailments. It might help us develop better treatments for you and the others."

Scarlet still didn't like it but she nodded and watched as he pulled out a small vial and worked with her IV port. "You seem pretty young to be a scientist."

He laughed "I get that a lot, I assure you that I am a real scientist. I graduated from SHIELD's university with my doctorate when I was twenty two."

"Wow, that's pretty young!"

He laughed "Yeah, it is!"

The conversation lulled, and he finished drawing her blood. She was trying to think of a way to make him stay longer but she couldn't think of anything. "Well, thanks" she said lamely.

He laughed "Sorry, I'd stay and entertain you but I've got to get back to my lab. Don't worry though, I'm sure other's will be in soon."

She sighed and watched as he awkwardly shuffled out. For a while she just thought about what he had said. How she was different from what they called 'inhumans'. Of course I would be too alien for the alien club, she thought bitterly.

She entertained herself for a while wondering how many inhumans' there were, and what their powers might be. After a bit her door opened again. This time it was a middle aged black man that came through.

"Hello Miss Romanov" he said politely as the door closes behind him. "My name is Dr. Garner, but you can call me Andrew."

Scarlet immediately did not like him. "What do you want Dr. Garner?" She asked icily.

He smiled warmly "as part of the admission to the inhumans program all inhumans' are evaluated a psychologist. I have been working with inhumans since before they had a name." He gave a small chuckle. "Mind if we talk for a bit?"

Now she hated him even more. "I am not talking to a shrink" She scoffed.

Andrew sighed "I was afraid you might say that. But I really just want to talk, and we don't have to talk about anything that you don't want to talk about."

She glared at him "I don't want to talk about anything."

Now he folded his arms, looking annoyed "why not?"

She struggled against her restraints angrily. "Because talking doesn't help anything."

"Have you ever talked to a therapist before? Many people find if very helpful."

Now she laughed "yeah, I've encountered shrinks before. I'm not interested."

Andrew looked at her for a moment, then came and sat down in the chair beside her bed. "You know, if you talk to me... I might be able to get those restraints removed."

She glared at him for a long moment, then finally broke. Who cares anyway? She thought. I'm going to be stuck in this room for the rest of my life no matter what. "Fine, what do you want to know?"

Andrew tried to smile "Well, I'd like to talk about why you chose to turn yourself in, if that's alright with you."

She gave him an incredulous look, then sighed. "I turned myself in to SHIELD because I couldn't live with my parents any more. It seemed like the responsible thing to do."

"Why couldn't you live with your parents? Did they kick you out?"

"No" she looked away for a moment, wishing she had lied. "I left… several months ago."

Andrew said nothing, but waiting patiently.

Scarlet wanted to scream at him, just make him talk… she didn't know what he wanted her to say. "We fought a lot… I was ruining their lives… and it was never going to get better… so I just left." Scarlet proceeded to tell Andrew the same story she had told Steve that morning.

When she was done Andrew was silent for a moment, then he stood and started removing the restraints from her wrists. "You know Scarlet, most of the inhumans that come here feel like they can't be trusted in the real world. They want to protect their friends and families from themselves because they feel that they are horrible and dangerous. But the way I see it, what is more brave or loving than giving up one's personal freedom for the sake of those you love?"

She quietly thanked him and she rubbed her sore wrists, then she watched him walk out of the room.

Steve had been sitting in his living room waiting for Loki and Natasha to arrive for almost an hour. He had already called Tony, Bruce, and Thor and asked them to arrive some time tomorrow. Now he just had to wait. He hadn't told them exactly what was happening, he just asked them to come to his house and talk.

Natasha didn't knock, she practically stormed into the room. "Where is she?" she asked after a moment of confusion at not seeing her daughter in Steve's small living room.

Steve stood nervously "Um… well… she's not here."

"What?" Natasha snapped. Loki came in behind her.

"Why don't you two sit down…" Steve gestured to the couch.

Natasha gave him a suspicious look, but she sat down, be it rather stiffly. Steve launched into a long and awkward explanation of the events of the last few days. When he was done Natasha was very quiet, and Loki had reached over and taken her hand in his.

"She did the right thing you know." He said softly.

Natasha silently stood and left the room. Loki smiled awkwardly at Steve. "Thank you for all your help, and don't worry about Natasha… she'll come around eventually."

Daisy was sitting in her office going over files when she heard a knock on the door. She knew it who it was before the door opened. She had been waiting for Andrew to come give her his report for nearly two hours. Not that she didn't have other work to get done, but she couldn't concentrate on work because her brain was preoccupied with a certain young inhuman.

"Andrew, thanks for coming by before you went home. I know it's late and you must be tired."

The older man came into the large, cluttered office and took a seat. "Not as tired as you must be. I'm worried about you Daisy, have you been sleeping enough?"

She laughed nervously, Andrew had a special quality about him that made her open up at the most inopportune but now was not the time. She needed to discuss the newest subject of the inhuman program. "I'm fine Andrew, let's talk about Scarlet."

He laughed too, but she knew he wouldn't drop it forever. "Scarlet is an interesting case. You aren't going to like what I have to say Daisy."

She sighed and rubbed her temples "I know she needs time… reevaluate in six months all that crap. Just tell me what you think."

He smiled "Well, she reminds me of another young inhuman I had to bribe to speak with me once upon a blue moon." He leaned back in his chair and tried to get more comfortable. "She has a lot of issues, and she doesn't want to speak to me… or anyone I'd wager. Honestly she isn't that unlike all the other inhumans that we see here; she doesn't trust herself, sees herself as a monster… But she is different too. We are going to have to tread very lightly with her."

"Of course…." Daisy said quietly "You understand how important she is, don't you? She's not just an inhuman… she is so much more…. And if we can't find a way to help her… to make her on our side… I don't know what we'll do."

Andrew smiled "I am confident that you can get through to her, but you are going to have to be careful." He gave her a pointed look "You may be the only person she will listen to, so be careful what you say."

Daisy sighed and glanced at the file laying open on her desk, it had crossed her mind more than once while reading through the old dirty folder from social services, and the formal papers from SHIELD that Scarlet and her had all too much in common. She had been worried that Andrew would say this that he would want to talk to her about her own past. And that was something she did not want to talk about. "Maybe I'll just let you do the talking." She said tiredly.

Andrew leaned forward and looked her in the eyes. "Scarlet needs someone to help her, you will understand her better than any of us can."

"Not all foster children are the same Andrew, my past means nothing. She needs someone who can help her now." She dropped the file and looked out the large window to her left. "But it doesn't matter… this isn't about me. I need you to get her to open up to you so that we can decide how best to proceed. We can't afford to make a mistake with this one."

Andrew nodded quietly, seeing that now was not the time to push Daisy further. "I'll let you get back to work, but I can't leave without telling you that you need to go home and get some rest."

She waved him off without speaking and turned back to something on her computer. Daisy would have time to rest later, right now she needed to contact a person she never dreamed she would get to meet.

Coulson came in about an hour later, while Daisy was deep into planning her meeting. He didn't even have to speak, she knew why he was there.

"Did Andrew send you?" she asked in an annoyed tone without taking her eyes off her computer. She had half expected him to send Lincoln, but he was probably already at home. "I'm fine."

Coulson laughed as he walked in and leaned back onto her desk, causing papers to fly everywhere. "Of course you're fine. Dr. Garner was just trying to be helpful."

Now she raised an eye brow "Dr. Garner? I'm not his patient anymore Phil, he isn't responsible for me… and neither are you."

"Daisy, we know that, but we can't help but worry. I know this case is taking its toll on you. I know it hits close to home. We don't have to talk about it, but I am still going to make sure you are okay." He gave her a firm look and she knew arguing would be useless. "Now, when was the last time you slept?"

She shrugged "I don't know… maybe 18 hours?"

"And ate?" he pressed

Now she blushed "Longer…"

"And when did you last go home?"

Now she laughed guiltily. "Several days… I've been busy."

He laughed and motioned to the door. "Come on, I'm driving you home. And we are stopping at McDonald's on the way to get you some food."

She scrunched up her nose in disgust "Why there?"

Coulson pointed at the clock and laughed "I think it will be the only place open. It's almost three o'clock in the morning!"

As Coulson led Daisy up the stone pathway to her house the door opened and Lincoln came rushing out to usher her in, quietly thanking Phil for his help. She grumbled about not needing people to take care of her but she didn't push them away. The truth was, she appreciated having people who cared about her. Phil must have left quickly after seeing her inside, because she soon found herself alone with her husband who was instructing her to get undressed and put on some pajamas.

"I'm sorry I was out so late" she said sleepily.

"It's okay Daisy, you were working I understand." He didn't say it like he was mad, but Daisy knew he was. Lincoln had known what he was signing up for when he asked Daisy to marry him, but some part of him had thought that she would settle more into married life.

"I should have called." She said apologetically, look up to meet his eyes. She wanted to share with him, to feel like they were family, and she did… but she couldn't give up her life at SHIELD, she couldn't give up her work. She still held out hope that Lincoln would start to become as involved in the inhuman program as she was. But Lincoln had been burned by SHIELD, and as of right now he could only go so far as to support Daisy in her choices. "Actually," she said brightly "I could use your help!"

Now he laughed at his wife, she was the image of exhausted, sitting in a swarm of blankets that never seemed to be folded on the bed correctly, her hair streaming down her shoulders and over her eyes, and one of his shirts hanging loosely on her slender frame. His wife was exhausted, but the moment she thought of work she perked up. He told her to go to sleep and climbed into the bed next to her. But he didn't sleep at first, he was thinking about her comment.

The truth was that he missed working, not that he wasn't working… but he missed working with inhumans, really helping people. And if Daisy said she needed his help she really did… or at least she would offer him something that would peak his interest. He looked over at his wife sleeping peacefully and smiled, but his mind wandering to whatever problem she had left at work, thinking of how he might help.


	4. Chapter 3

**Trigger warnings for suicide, self-harm, alcohol use, and lots of angsty emotions. More specific warnings before each chapter.**

 **Everything but the OCs and the plot belong to marvel.**

The next morning over breakfast Daisy filled Lincoln in of Scarlet's situation and he agreed to come into work with her and meet the girl. Daisy had to go meet with Scarlet's parents, but Lincoln headed towards Scarlet's room only stopping to speak with Andrew briefly.

He took a moment to look in through the one way mirror and took her in. She was sitting quietly on a bed flipping through a thick, yellow paged book. Her hair was a vibrant and curly red which seemed to leave no doubt as to who her mother could be. When she looked up for a moment he caught a flicker of mischievous green eyes which he had been told came from her father.

Though she sat peacefully on the bed reading he could tell that she was uncomfortable. Most of her joints were wrapped in bulky looking braces, and she was chewing her lip worriedly. After glancing up several times she stared boldly at the window, almost causing Lincoln to shrink back.

He knock, and after a surprised come in he entered. "Hi Scarlet," he said as warmly as he could "I'm Lincoln, mind if I come in and talk with you for a bit?"

Her bright green eyes looked startled and suspicious as she looked him over, quietly assessing him. He waited at the entrance of the room, giving her time to look him over and invite him in.

"Why?" she asked after staring at him for a moment.

He smiled "Well, I am an inhuman and Daisy, the head of SHIELD's inhuman program asked me to come talk to you."

She turned back to her book "I don't want to talk to anymore shrinks" she said firmly.

Lincoln laughed "Trust me, I am not a shrink. In fact, I'm not even a SHIELD agent! Daisy is my wife… but I don't work for SHIELD."

This perked Scarlet's interest, as she leaned forward Lincoln took his cue to come further into the room. "Really? What do you do?"

He smiled and sat down "Well, I used to work in a secret inhuman compound helping new inhumans adjust to life with the powers and physical changes that come with them. But that compound doesn't exists anymore, and now I work with some other inhumans in helping those same people adjust to life in the civilian world."

Scarlet sat in her bed across from a young handsome man who told her stories of a compound made solely for inhumans and powered people. He told her about his wife Daisy, but mostly, he told her about how many people struggled with living with powers in the normal world.

Finally he smiled at her, "Scarlet… I know you don't want to talk about it… but I have to ask. What is your plan? Are you just going to hide away in SHIELD for the rest of your life?"

Scarlet blushed, that had been exactly her plan. "Why not?" she asked defensively "Isn't everyone safer if I am somewhere that I can be controlled?"

Lincoln shook his head "Scarlet, why should people be in danger because of you? Because you ran away from your family? Because you were drinking and stealing? Because you fought with your parents? Because you were hurting and needed help? Those are not good things, but you didn't endanger anyone but yourself. And I don't think you deserve a life sentence because you might end up like your parents. You deserve to live and breathe on this earth just as much as non-powered people. Sure you need some guidance, and I think we need to help you and your family adjust to life with an inhuman, but don't sign your life away because you are scared to change."

Scarlet wouldn't meet his eyes "I'm kind of tired now, and I need to rest before my parent's get here" she said in a voice thick with emotion. Lincoln took his cue to leave, but he told her he was always around to talk, and that he'd try to stop by again later.

Daisy sat nervously in her office waiting for Scarlet's parent's to arrive for their meeting. As the head of the inhuman program she had met with the families of many of the inhumans who came through their doors. Part of the program was working with families to get the subject home, or at least to keep them in contact with the families. At one point inhumans had been forced to leave their families behind in order to protect them, but recently they had been able to put in place some safe guards to enable certain inhumans to return home.

This was the first time she had been truly scared to go into a meeting with parents.

When Natasha and Loki finally arrived at her door they were escorted by five guards and the entire team of the Avengers. She laughed nervously and ordered everyone except the parent's to wait outside. Once they were inside with the door closed she forced a smile and asked them to sit down.

This was the first look she had gotten at either of them, but she could immediately see their similarities with Scarlet. Natasha had the same striking red hair, though she wore hers longer and today it was pulled into a severe bun. Loki was similarly pale, but had thick locks of dark hair that he wore longer than most men, and the same mischievous green eyes as his daughter.

"It's nice to meet you two," she started shakily as she sat down across from them. "I'm so sorry that we had to meet under such circumstances. I've heard most of the story from Captain Rogers, but I would love to hear it from you as well."

Natasha scoffed "This whole thing is ridiculous, our daughter is not joining your little band of misfits so if you don't mind I'd like to take her home."

Loki gave his wife a warning glare but said nothing.

Daisy sighed "Agent Romaov,"

"I am not an agent anymore."

"I'm sorry, Ms Romanov, I understand why you feel that way, but Scarlet came to us for protection… from herself and others, and I intend to protect her. Your daughter has not been here long, but based on our tentative psychological assessment she is depressed and suffers from anxiety and panic attacks. She has admitted to drinking excessively, has every marker for deeply seeded trust issues, the last time you saw her she attempted to take her own life, and we have reason to believe she has a history of self harm. No one is doubting your love for Scarlet, but can you honestly tell me that you are prepared to deal with those problems when you can't even keep her in one place?"

Natasha and Loki both looked shocked at the end of her speech, and honestly Daisy was shocked too, that was not what she had been planning to say.

"Well… umm" Natasha said uncomfortably "I was not aware of most of that… well I guess I was. Fine, we can't handle her, but I don't have to like it." She muttered stubbornly.

Daisy smiled, she could see how much Scarlet was like her mother. "I know this is hard for you both, but we are all here to help Scarlet. And I want you to know that this is not SHIELD as you both know it. I run the inhuman program, and though we do run within SHIELD, we are our own program and we do not allow the greater interests of SHIELD to influence our program or its participants.

Loki looked a bit critical "When you say 'inhuman program' what are you talking about? Is this some commitment? Because Scarlet is a minor and you cannot hold her to a commitment she made without our permission."

Daisy shook her head "The program was set up to deal with the large influx of new inhumans SHIELD has been seeing. We are trying to assemble a team of skilled inhumans to aide in SHIELD endeavors, but joining the program does not garuntee that you will be invited into the team and there is no commitment. We do however, have a policy about releasing inhumans who are believed to be a danger to themselves or others. At this time, we are holding Scarlet under that policy, not that she has tried to leave."

The three of them spent the next hour talking about plans for Scarlet, and finally Daisy invited them to go see their daughter.

Scarlet had known all day that her parents were coming, and it was making her more jumpy than a three year old on an energy drink. Lincoln had been able to distract her for a brief time, but the moment he left she returned to worriedly pretending to read her book. An hour later she had thrown that same book at the aide who brought her lunch. Then Andrew had come in and tried to talk to her, which only made things worse. He had finally calmed her down enough that he felt he could leave her alone again, and she had been sitting in her room ever since.

They had taken her canes when she arrived so she couldn't get far anyway, but her 'episode' as Andrew had called it, had worn her out and she had eventually collapsed into the chair next to her bed.

When she heard the knock on the door she could barely speak. Her voice cracked as she called for them to come in. Both her parent's looked awful, she could immediately see how much of a physical toll the last two months had taken. Natasha had lost weight, Loki's hair had greyed and thinned a bit, and they both looked exhausted.

For a moment they stood by the door and stared at her blankly, no one knew what to say. Then her father, thank god for him! Rushed forward to hug her.

"We were so scared… I thought I'd never see you again! Promise me you will never scare us like that again!"

Scarlet forced a smile as he pulled out of the hug to look at her. "I'm sorry dad… I didn't mean to scare you, things just got out of hand."

She looked past her dad and locked eyes with her mother "I'm sorry" she repeated.

There was a long moment where she and Natasha's eyes locked, then her mother rushed forward to embrace her. "I am so happy you are alive, but don't think I'm not furious right now" she whispered. "But we can talk about that later, they didn't give us much time… something about not upsetting you."

Scarlet blushed "Sorry, I guess I've been causing some trouble since I got here…" she said sheepishly.

Everyone laughed and the ice was broken, she knew there was still a storm to come, that she would have to answer for a lot of poor choices she had made, but for the moment it seemed both her parents were happy. "So what is going to happen… are they going to keep me in here forever?" she asked hesitantly. Lincoln's words earlier had really struck a chord with her, and she hadn't been able to think about much else since.

Her father seated himself comfortably on the floor and shrugged "I think it depends, we were told that they haven't been able to get a complete psych eval on you… that you haven't really been cooperative… we can't really make any decisions until we know our options. "

Scarlet blushed again, embarrassed to think that her parent's had probably heard more about her problems than she had ever intended them to know. "What did they tell you?" she asked worriedly.

Loki and Natasha shared a glance before repeating the laundry list of problems Daisy had reported to them. Perhaps it wasn't the best parenting move, but they had agreed to be honest with Scarlet, even when it was hard.

Natasha didn't comment on any of the things in the list, but Loki pressed her a little more. "Are those things true Scarlet? Your mother and I love you no matter what, but we need to know what is going on to help you."

Scarlet nodded miserably, there was no point in lying now that they already knew the truth. "I guess, I mean… the drinking and the cutting.. And the other stuff sounds right, but I couldn't really say."

They enveloped her in yet another hug as she blinked the tears from her eyes. Then they sat around and talked about other things for a few minutes, silly things, just to change the subject. After a few minutes they left, promising to return with more of the Avengers the next day.

A few hours later a new woman walked into Scarlet's room, Scarlet looked up startled when the door opened… she had been left alone since her parent's left. The woman was young, maybe in her twenties, and dressed in all black. Her hair hung around her shoulders in loose brown curls, she smiled as she walked in and reached out to shake Scarlet's hand.

"Hello Miss Romaov, my name is Daisy Johnson. I'm sorry I wasn't able to come in sooner to meet you, I am the head of SHIELD's inhuman program."

Scarlet shook Daisy's hand tentatively. "I know who you are…"

Daisy smiled again and motioned to the seat next to Scarlet's bed. "Mind if I sit?" she asked warmly.

Scarlet shrugged "I don't really care."

Daisy sighed "Scarlet I'm very glad that you chose to come into SHIELD, our program is here to help inhumans adjust to their new lives."

"I'm not strictly inhuman though am I?" Scarlet sort of snapped "Because I don't have Cree blood?"

Daisy nodded "That does make you a little different, but it doesn't change anything… We would love to have you in our program."

Scarlet looked around the bleak hospital room she had spent the last two days in. She had been wondering exactly what this 'program' would entail. "Do I have any choice in the matter?" she asked hesitantly.

Daisy chewed her lip for a moment. "Well, Scarlet because of the circumstances of your arrival here… SHIELD cannot just let you go, it would be irresponsible of us. But we also cannot force you to join the program."

"So where does that leave me?"

Daisy pulled out two boxes from behind her "I have two options for you Scarlet." She explained as she placed the boxes on the bed in front of her. "This one contains a bracelet which would block your powers, once it was on you would not be able to teleport more than a few centimeters. If you choose this option you will be returned to your parents and assigned a SHIELD officer who will check up on you, not unlike a parole officer. Assuming good behavior your case will be reviewed in five years and if you are no longer ruled as dangerous then the bracelet will be removed, but you will remain on SHIELD's watch list."

Scarlet reached out and touched the box gently, recalling Lincoln's words to her. "What is the other option?" she asked quietly.

Daisy pointed to the second box, "This box contains a similar bracelet, but one that would give you a range of about thirty feet. It also has a tracker which SHIELD can monitor you with. If you choose this option you will join the inhuman's program. We will train you and help you to hone your abilities, and if you complete the program you will become a SHIELD agent. Normally people have the option the drop out of the program at any time, because you have been declared dangerous and have a history of criminal involvement you will be required to remain in the program until you are 21, at which point you can decide to go free or continue and become a SHIELD agent."

Scarlet was silent for a moment, neither of these options seemed especially good… She was only 17 years old, and four years was a long time… but then again, living with her parent's and losing her powers for a minimum of five years didn't seem like a great option either. "Which would you do?" she asked quietly.

"Well, to be honest I was given a similar choice not that long ago… the circumstances were different, but it was the same idea. I chose SHIELD, even though it meant dealing with my past, and my actions, but I never regretted it."

After another moment Scarlet reached forward and took the second box. Daisy helped her to put on the thin silver bracelet. After they were done Scarlet fingered the bracelet and bit her lip thoughtfully. "What happens now?"


	5. Chapter 4

**Trigger warnings for suicide, self-harm, alcohol use, and lots of angsty emotions. More specific warnings before each chapter. The trigger warning for self-harm is specific to this chapter.**

 **Everything but the OCs and the plot belong to marvel.**

After another moment Scarlet reached forward and took the second box. Daisy helped her to put on the thin silver bracelet. After they were done Scarlet fingered the bracelet and bit her lip thoughtfully. "What happens now?"

Daisy smiled and stood "Well, some arrangements need to be made, then we will allow you to go home, with an escort of course, for the weekend to say goodbye to your family. After that you will be transferred to a safe house, and finally to the inhuman training compound."

"Goodbye? How long am I going away?" Scarlet asked in alarm.

"I don't know for sure Scarlet, it depends on how you progress through the program… but it won't be forever, at certain points throughout the program you can earn trips home and weekends off."

Daisy left soon after, but before she did she informed Scarlet that because she was wearing the bracelet her door would remain unlocked and she was allowed to roam the area. But if she tried to leave the hospital wing the doors would lock down and an alarm would go off.

With her new found freedom Scarlet found herself wandering the halls of SHIELD's hospital wing. This was a much more difficult feat than it looked like because she still did not have access to her crutches, without which she could only hobble a few feet at a time. Some of the nurses had offered her a wheel chair, but she declined. Since the bracelet had a range of thirty feet she was able to teleport where she wanted to go instead of walking. This worked perfectly until she grew exhausted from standing and sunk to the floor in front of a window overlooking the compound that Steve lived in.

That was where Andrew found her, she could have easily teleported back to her room, but she was happy to be out and about. And she didn't particularly mind seeing Andrew either.

He sat down next to her and smiled "I didn't think I'd find you here." he said warmly as he offered her a stick of gum.

She took it awkwardly "Well, I was finally let out of my cage and this is where my steam ran out."

He laughed as he unwrapped a stick of gum for himself. "I heard you made your choice, I'm glad you'll be staying with SHIELD."

She shrugged "Yeah, I guess it was just the lesser of two evils…"

"Do you really believe that?"

She shrugged "I don't know what I believe Andrew, I just know that going back to my parent's… even without powers… I just can't do that right now. Maybe that is me being a coward, maybe I'm just running away but it's the best I can do right now."

Andrew smiled at her "That's all we can ask of you. Personally I think that you are making a very wise choice, you have to consider yourself and what is best for you. I hear you are going home for the weekend."

"Don't worry, a team of five agents is babysitting me to make sure I don't run away."

Andrew shook his head and pointed to the bracelet on her wrist. "That will keep you from running away, those agents are to protect you."

Scarlet turned to Andrew and gave him a suspicious look "What are you talking about?"

"You are an important person Scarlet. And not only are those agents there to protect you from outside threats, there are there to keep an eye on how you are doing." He locked eyes with her "If you are getting over whelmed… if you feel like you need to run away, you tell them and they will bring you back. Understood?"

Scarlet nodded quietly.

The next morning her parents were waiting for her when she woke up. Andrew, Daisy, and Lincoln were there to see her off, along with her five escorts. The car ride home was tense to say the least, with two agents on either side of Scarlet and one driving no one felt like talking much. But Scarlet knew that the quiet wouldn't last.

All of the Avengers were waiting for her when they arrived at home, Scarlet's face turned bright red when she saw them with their signs and gifts for her. "You really shouldn't have made such a fuss…" she mumbled as she took Thor's poorly wrapped gift.

Her mom smiled and hugged her "We wanted this to be a celebration, not a punishment."

And she was true to her word, there was cake, and laughing, and games. Scarlet participated as much as she could but she honestly wasn't feeling up to it, so for the most part she just sat there and faked a smile. When everyone finally left at 11 o'clock she gratefully slipped away to her room.

She was only alone for less than a minute before her mother burst into her room and found her frantically rummaging through one of her dresser drawers. "It's not in there" she sounded exhausted.

Scarlet looked up at her mother, alarmed. "What are you talking about?" she snapped.

Natasha sighed and leaned against the door frame "Your father and I found all your alcohol…"

"What?" Scarlet blushed.

"And the razors… we found everything Scarlet." She moved into the room and sat on her daughter's bed. "Did you really think we were going to let you use them after everything that has happened?"

Now Scarlet stood "How dare you? That is none of your business… you had no right!"

"I had no right? Scarlet I am your mother! It is my job to keep you safe! I won't pretend I've always done a great job at it, but that doesn't mean I am giving up now."

Scarlet scoffed and turned away from her mother, angrily tearing apart her room.

"You won't find anything Scarlet… your father and I aren't going to feed your addictions!"

That made Scarlet stop, she swung around as quickly as her crutch would allow. "I'm not an addict!" She did not yell this, it was more of a shocked whisper. "Sure I've made some mistakes, I've done stupid stuff… but I'm not addicted! Drinking and cutting are different from being addicted!"

Natasha sighed, and though Scarlet didn't notice it, she looked very sad, and very, very tired. "No, you're not addicted… you just drink and hurt yourself when you're angry, or upset… to calm you down."

Scarlet said nothing.

"You're not addicted, you just want to escape. You aren't an addict, you just get an overwhelming need sometimes and you would do anything to fill it. Addicted doesn't always mean sniveling on the floor going through withdrawal Scarlet, sometimes it means tearing apart your room with shaking hands when you've had a couple of rough days and thinking that you'll never get to sleep without something to help you forget all those terrible thoughts that haunt your eyes." Then she stood up and hugged her daughter and walked out of her room.

Scarlet sank down to her bed once her mother was gone, wishing more than ever that her parent's had not ransacked her room. Her mother had been right, she wouldn't get to sleep without something. She briefly thought about sneaking out… but as she glanced hatefully at the stupid bracelet on her wrist she knew that wasn't an option.

The next morning at breakfast her mother said nothing about the huge bags under Scarlet's eyes, and she was grateful. Instead they talked about what Scarlet would need to pack, and whether or not she needed to buy anything before she left the next morning. Of course Scarlet wouldn't be allowed to go out shopping, but her parents could go. Eventually they came up with a list, and while Scarlet returned to her room to gather some laundry and Loki hurried out the door to get to work and Natasha called Clint to see if he could come over and stay with Scarlet.

Clint found her perched atop her bed staring angrily at a pile of books and other random items that young girls tend to collect.

"Having trouble packing?" he asked warmly.

She turned to look at him and forced a smile "Not really, packing is something I've done before… I'm just not sure what I am expected to bring…"

She and Clint talked through each of the items in her pile, then popped in a movie. They were actually enjoying themselves when Natasha got home from shopping.

The weekend went by quickly, and not without its moments of tension; mainly between Scarlet and her mother. Somehow Loki seemed to be able to accept Scarlet's decision more easily than Natasha, Scarlet guessed that it was because she was more like him than most people realized. Early Sunday morning Daisy arrived at their door and told them it was time to say goodbye.

Scarlet had been dreading this moment since she had heard she was coming home. She had been trying not to think about what lay ahead, about leaving her family. It seemed funny that even after she had run away, seemingly wanting nothing to do with them, the thought of not seeing her parents for an unknown amount of time terrified her.

They stood in the living room, just the three of them. And for a long time no one said anything. Finally her dad pulled her into a hug and whispered "I am so proud of you Scar, you got a lot of things from your mom and I, good and bad… but you were able to do what I never could… you were willing to admit that you needed help. I love you."

When Scarlet pulled away there were tears in both their eyes. Natasha didn't have as much to say. As she hugged her daughter she simple whispered "I don't understand, but I love you anyway, and I will be here when you are ready to come home."

The Avengers had lined the walk way, guiding her path to the non-descript black car that waited for her. Several of them gave her hugs, or offered well wishes. Lincoln carried her bags out. She turned around one last time before sliding into the car to look at the funny group of people standing on the lawn waving. One last look at the quaint little house in the small town with the black and red picket fence and the Russian flag waving. She bit back some tears, she knew she was doing the right thing but it didn't make the good byes any easier.


End file.
